Stories & Articles

Hello Reader, Last week’s podcast episode was the last one for 2023. I understand you may not have had time to listen to it, given all the activities surrounding the end of the year. But if you click here you can still catch episode 208, Christmas - A Time to Reflect. It’s about how Mary processed her experience in giving birth to Jesus and the things she reflected upon over and over again. One listener said it was the best Christmas episode in the six years I’ve been doing the...

Merry Christmas Reader, Today’s podcast episode takes us back to the very first Christmas and how one of the main characters responded to it. They set an example for all of us in how we can respond to Christmas in 2023. It will enrich our lives when we do as they did. Click here to listen to episode 208, Christmas - A Time to Reflect. Until next week, I wish you all the joy that you can wish.* John Certalic You Were Made for This is the podcast sponsored by Caring for Others, a missionary...

Merry Christmas Reader, Each December our You Were Made for This podcast focuses on relational themes that arise during the Christmas season. Last week’s episode for example, episode 207, was about how to help the people we love at Christmas when they are going through a rough time. If you missed it, click here to listen in. Also, I thought you might be interested in hearing Christmas episodes from past years and the timeless relationship topics they consider. So today I’ve listed those from...

Reader, Several years ago I did a podcast episode about relationship lessons we learn from the classic Christmas film, It’s a Wonderful Life! One character in particular we didn’t say much about also shows us a few things that can help us in our relationships. So today's show picks up where we left off in that episode. This character faced a relationship challenge that is similar to one we sometimes face at Christmas. Click here to hear how they met this challenge. It could help you in your...

Reader, One of the things I love about doing a podcast and weekly blog posts is the response I get from listeners and readers. Today I’m sharing an email I received from June, a podcast listener from Columbia, South Carolina. In recent blog posts I’ve asked what listeners/readers are thankful for. So with the Thanksgiving holiday just completed, June writes about being thankful for something her father did over Thanksgiving weekend many years ago. She writes: Dear John, I am thankful for my...

Happy Thanksgiving Reader, A few weeks ago I wrote a blog post about a solution to loneliness. I mentioned a book I’m reading that quotes a study which says writing things down you are thankful for "can significantly improve subjective well-being, and reduce feelings of loneliness.” Click here to read that post if you missed it. I asked readers what they are thankful for lately. Here is what Marilyn, a podcast listener from Minnesota, is thankful for: A man who had just been allowed to...

Reader, The older I get the more grateful I’ve become for the stories people share about the experiences that shaped their lives. It’s not so much what we learn about others from these stories, as it is what we learn about ourselves in listening to them. Today’s podcast episode illustrates this relational principle you may want to consider for yourself. I tell the story in today’s show of an accidental breakfast I had with an older man from another country, and how it lifted me out of myself...

Hello Reader, If you missed last week’s podcast episode, #205 How to Have Meaningful Conversations, you can listen to it when you click here.​ While I work on next week’s show I’ll leave you today with something interesting I came across in a book I’m reading. The book is Wired for Love - A Neuroscientist’s Journey Through Romance, Loss, and the Essence of Human Connection by Stephanie Cacioppo. The author applies what she’s learned about the neuroscience of love to her own relationships,...